Arsenal loanee set for semi-final with Cruzeiro in Brazil | OneFootball

Arsenal loanee Marquinhos has progressed to the Campeonato Mineiro semi-finals with Cruzeiro, and they now know their opponents for that stage of the competition.

Photos via @pedrovalefoto and @yurilaurindofoto on Instagram

Arsenal’s Marquinhos played 72 minutes of Cruzeiro’s final Campeonato Mineiro group game on Wednesday night, away to Democrata GV.

Though Cruzeiro lost 2-1, the result ultimately wasn’t important. Marquinhos’ team had already qualified for the knockout stages from Group C, and with Tombense winning their Group A match, it was impossible for Cruzeiro to finish with the best record across the three groups.

The group winner with the best record faces the best runner-up, with the two other group winners facing each other. So with Tombense winning their match, Cruzeiro’s fate was sealed, regardless of their result.

Photo via Marquinhos on Instagram

Cruzeiro will face America Mineiro in the semi-finals, playing home and away in a two-legged tie. The winner will face either Tombense or Atletico Mineiro in the final.

Cruzeiro’s semi-final home leg is set to be played on Sunday, February 16th, with the away leg the following weekend.

Photo via Marquinhos on Instagram

The Campeonato Mineiro is a competition contested by the best teams in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais.

Marquinhos leads the entire competition for successful dribbles (with 39), having started five of Cruzeiro’s eight matches and come off the bench in the other three. He has one goal and one assist so far.